


Pictures On The Wall

by iM_Felix121703



Category: TWICE (Band)
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), F/F, Happy Ending, Minor Im Jaebum | JB/Park Jinyoung, Minor Kim Dahyun/Minatozaki Sana, Pregnancy, Slice of Life, Son Chaeyoung-centric, Twins Hwang Hyunjin & Hwang Yeji, journalist Son Chaeyoung, photographer Myoui Mina
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-12
Updated: 2021-03-12
Packaged: 2021-03-20 12:00:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,147
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30004575
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iM_Felix121703/pseuds/iM_Felix121703
Summary: Chaeyoung sat in front of the picture of Seoul in the waiting room at the hospital. Pictures that captured moments from the past flew in her head while she waited for any kind of news, whether good or bad.
Relationships: Myoui Mina/Son Chaeyoung
Comments: 3
Kudos: 18





	Pictures On The Wall

**Author's Note:**

> Based on the book "One Day in December" and the movie "Happiest Season" (which reminded me too much of Mitchang, watch the movie and you’ll understand)  
> Names of family members are invented!  
> Their ages are- late twenties to early thirties.

**present time**

The woman with the bleached hair was sitting in the white waiting room. Occasionally opens her phone to see what time it is as well as ruffles her hair and rearranges it. It wasn't late at all but she was already feeling tired from the long day with all the pressure that had fallen on her.

Other people were sitting in the big room on chairs around but the blonde did not care. She just stared at the huge picture that hung on the wall in front of her. She was not sure how much she looked at the picture which was of a specific view of Seoul, the picture was taken from the old bridge that overlooked the lighted city.

The blonde rubbed her eyes, she wanted to cry, she did not know what to expect, the situation looked awful when they were at home so she hurried to the hospital. She kept looking at the picture to try to ignore the bad thoughts that flooded her head.

Memories flooded in as she kept looking at the same picture.

**Fall 2009**

Chaeyoung stood in front of the bright city, the time passed and it became late as long as she continued to stare at the view in front of her. As much as she did not want to do the task that she had to do, she had to do it, and part of it was to photograph the part that was related to the article she was going to write about. An article that will go into the most boring part of the magazine where she does her internship.

Chaeyoung studied journalism at university and now she has a chance to do something with her studies, to really start her life. And the place that took her to do the internship is a pretty well-known youth magazine downtown. But the only problem was that she got the most horrible job she could think of. Work with the "nature and environment" section of the magazine.

She ran her hand through her cropped brunette hair before sighing. She still had to write the last piece of her work but took her time on the bridge, just breathing the fresh air. Her camera was not a high-quality camera, it was a digital camera she bought before starting university, so they will probably scold her for the poor quality.

Chaeyoung took out the camera case after going through the last three best photos she had taken. Her bag was cluttered mostly because of the big sweater playing a pretty big part in its applicability. After taking one last look at the view, the brunette put the camera in the bag and walked towards the nearest bus stop.

"fuck," she murmured as she had to reach out to look for her wallet under all the things that filled the same bag she was carrying. After taking out her wallet she noticed pens that had fallen out of the bag. Her bus had already left when she bent down to pick up the pens. With the time she still has till the next bus, she could sit down and sort out her bag, maybe that would help her pass the time until then.

"Fuck," Chaeyoung said again when she searched the case with her camera in the full bag but it was not there. On one hand, she got into the stress of losing her camera, on the other hand, she was relieved that she did not get on the bus otherwise she would not have noticed that her camera was not on her till she was already far from where she guessed she had lost it.

The brunette closed her bag and walked back to the bridge, where she guessed her camera had fallen.

She looked all the way at the sidewalk, the camera could have fallen wherever she walked along the bridge. As she raised her head she did not think she would see a girl with black hair resting on her shoulders, her eyes swollen and red, and her delicate-looking fingers holding Chaeyoung's camera. The brunette got closer to the black-haired woman who did not seem to notice that the camera owner was going in her direction.

"Excuse me?" Chaeyoung said as she stood in front of the black-haired woman. The other looked up from the camera, the picture she had just seen was the last picture Chaeyoung took of herself, which means that until now the foreigner had seen the pictures of the city she had taken not too long ago. "Is this your camera?" the black-haired asked. Chaeyoung nodded. "Sorry," the woman's voice was so angelic, even if it was a little hoarse from the crying, her big eyes were so beautiful that for a moment the brunette's breathing stopped.

"I- are you okay?" She could not ignore the fact that the black-haired in front of her was with puffy eyes from crying. "Oh," the taller one said, raising a hand to wipe away the tears from her cheeks. "Yes," she said. Chaeyoung saw that she was trying to smile. "Breakups are not my strong suit." "I'm sorry." "It's not your fault, we were together for two years and the next thing I know is that we will have to live in different parts of the world," the black-haired woman explained and tried to stop more tears from coming down, Chaeyoung noticed.

The shorter one wanted to approach the other and hug her but stopped herself, they are strangers. "Everything will be fine, eonni," the brunette did not know why she called her that for a second, maybe because she looked a little older than her, "I promise everything will be fine in the end, take me for example, I almost lost my life camera, I work in a magazine in the crappiest section and try to do what I can because I only specialize there as an intern." Chaeyoung literally spilled her life story in front of the black-haired woman who was a complete stranger, at least it made the other smile.

"I hope you'll get far," the taller woman said. "Thank you, you too," Chaeyoung replied, this time when she took the camera she opened the bag and carefully put it inside so that it would not fall out of the bag again. "Thank you for finding my camera." "Thank you for trying to encourage me." "I hope I succeeded with that." The black-haired giggled. Chaeyoung's heart tightened in her chest.

"I have to go get my bus," the brunette recalled after the two of them looked at each other, neither of them cut off eye contact. "Then you better go." "Yes, Ummm, thanks again, and..." "Bye." "Yes, bye."

**Fall 2010**

"I'm telling you Dahyun-ah, I do not want you to set me up at all." "Come on, Chaengi, you need to get out a little bit, this is just someone from my list." "Did I already tell you that your list is weird?" "Sorry that I'm trying to find people ‘their one’ without having to come out of the closet in front of the whole world and his wife," Dahyun said.

Chaeyoung has just gone out of her apartment towards her new job, after a long year of internships she has submitted a job offer to one of the largest journalistic companies in Seoul and has been accepted to work for a women's magazine under the company name. She did not want to be late for work but of course, her best friend had to call her early in the morning to tell her she needed to be more socialized.

"And I thank you very much but the last time you found me someone from your list it did not go so well." "And who's to blame?" "I was to blame, I know but I did not feel it and she was really really really clingy and I could not continue anymore," the brunette complained. Her hair had already reached her shoulders almost touching the coat she was wearing. "So I have someone new, more worth it. Nayeon eonni was able to get me her number." "Aish," Chaeyoung put her backpack on her shoulder and locked the apartment.

"Is it because of this girl you saw on the bridge last year?" "I have to go to work." "Oh, come on Cheang." "Bye Dahyun-i." "Fin-" But Chaenyoung has already hung up.

Dahyun had a list of people, she was a matchmaker, the savior of anyone who wanted to go out and could not find with whom. She goes out with the person on a date or just for a meeting or even just talks to them on the phone, asks them if she can keep their phone number and matches them with other people at a given moment, she was a walking dating site. This is actually how Dahyun and Chaeyoung met, through Nayeon. 

Back when Chaeyoung started university and was looking for people she might be able to go out with, here Dahyun came into the picture and has been there since. they had become best friends, and now after years of "the list" Dahyun no longer needed it for herself because she is already dating someone. some Japanese girl named Sana she met through someone.

Chaeyoung took the bus to get to her new workplace. It was quite far from the apartment where she lived, she needed to take one bus and walk another ten minutes until she reached the big and intimidating building. The company's huge logo was at the top of the building and looking up only caused the brunette a headache. She took a deep breath and went inside.

Inside the building was warm and pleasant compared to the cold weather that began to be outside as autumn went on and changed to winter. Chaeyoung went to the main counter to give her name and get her entry badge inside. She was instructed to walk towards an office down the hall on the first floor where she would meet the rest of the new co-workers who had arrived that day.

The elevator was crowded, the hallway had quite a few people walking but in the end, the brunette found herself in the right place, a small meeting room where three other people sat in, and looked just as clueless as she was. "Hey," she said to the one she chose to sit next to. "Hello," he replied, not seeming to want to talk to anyone, or rather, surprised that she had approached him. "Son Chaeyoung, I'm new here," she introduced herself. "Seo Changbin," the other said, shaking her hand.

"Have you been approached for a specific job?" She asked him. the other nodded, "Music," he replied. "radio?" He nodded. "Cool." "What about you?" "writer for the women's magazine," she replied, it sounded pretty lame compared to what Changbin said he was going to do. "Nice, good luck." "back at you." Just as they finished the small talk it seemed that two more people had come in followed by a very formal man with documents in his hand and some briefcases.

The seven in the room looked at him as he went to sit across from them at the head of the table. "Hello everyone and welcome to JYP Press, our company specializes in many areas of advertising such as radio, newspapers, and magazines and of course advertisements," the man explained, "you are here and are about to disperse to the different departments according to the department you had applied to. you would be able to meet each other in the cafeteria where you can eat and spend your free time. above you, there are your bosses who can decide where to send you, what to do with you and so on.

Wow, Chaeyoung thought, it's a lot compared to what she did when she was an intern, bringing coffee and food, printing forms, and writing small parts and documents. here she can straight up start her work as a reporter. It was exciting and scary at the same time.

"-You also have a dress code, come to the office in formal attire suitable for work, not these hoodies, but blazers, if you are cold, bring sweaters. No ripped jeans-" he sent a look at someone sitting in front of Chaeyoung, "-no colorful socks-" this time Send a look to Chaeyoung herself who felt embarrassed noticing the yellow socks with the avocado she was wearing, "-Radio Boy-" He looked at Changbin straightening, "-Your dress code is according to your supervisor." the man nodded.

After going through all the other explanations, getting their business cards and the forms they would have to submit ready to their superiors, the seven were left alone in the room for a few minutes to take a deep breath. "You have ten minutes to yourselves" is what the person who came to explain to them about everything told them. "Oh My God," the girl with the ripped jeans said and put her hand on her heart which apparently knocked just as hard as the hearts of all of them. "It was tough," a blond man said. Everyone nodded.

A short conversation and Chaeyoung was on her way to the floor she was asked to go to, the floor that was connected to the women's magazine she would work for, when she got out of the elevator someone was already waiting for her, "Son Chaeyoung?" The woman asked. "Yes?" "Come after me please, I was asked to give you a short tour around our department, even go down to the lower floor to the photography studio and the offices to see who else you will work with ..."

The woman was babbling all this time as they passed between the various corridors and large halls with the boxes. "This is where you work," she told her, showing her an empty-looking cubicle in which she could see its contents because it was as low as any of the other eight cubicles in the room. "Welcome to our magazine," someone else said, the one sitting at the cubicle next to hers. "Thank you," Chaeyoung replied.

When she went down to the photography floor after the same woman who took her on a tour, she noticed how everything was so neat, there were no pictures scattered on desks and floors, no screen was turned towards the hallway and there were several rooms with glass walls and many printers. Wow.

Chaeng looked around and was fascinated. There were a lot of pictures on the walls, more like photos and framed newspaper pages with contests of the best pictures. It was amazing. "Come after me," the woman told her and the brunette followed her. But then she stopped because she saw the person she had been looking for all this time. And still did not know her name. Chaeyoung looked at her guide and then at the black-haired woman standing next to one of the printers on the other side of the room.

The brunette decided to approach the black-haired woman, her hair was longer, and reached to the middle of her back even when her hair was in a low ponytail, her bangs flattered in front of her, Chaeyoung felt the same feeling on the bridge. "Hey," she said. The black-haired turned to her and her eyes widened in amazement. "You..." "I'm new here. But I found you." "You found me?" "doesn't matter, I have to hurry but Ummm, I'm Son Chaeyoung." "Myoui Minari, everyone calls me Mina." "You have a name..." "Yes, I'm Japanese, you better hurry, I do not think it's a good idea for you to talk to me now." "Wait, would you want-" she took a deep breath, and avoided eye contact, " -Eat dinner with me, you know, Ummm. " "Are you asking me to go out with you, in the middle of work?" "No. No. Absolutely not... maybe..." "Why not. Meet me outside the building when you're done." Chaeyoung nodded quickly and then hurried back to her instructor who was talking to some other person.

The brunette did not think a day could be so long when you wait for something at the end of it.

When the day finally ended, Chaeyoung left the building with a warm feeling in her stomach. Not because she finally got a job. Definitely not. But because she's about to see Mina, Myoui Minari, the girl she saw on the bridge a year ago. Chaeyoung never thought she would have the guts to approach the photographer. She's a photographer, right?

And as she was told, Chaeyoung stood outside the office building, and not ten minutes later, Mina showed up, with a black trench coat. "Hey," she said to the brunette. "Hey, you're really here." "You offered me to eat with you. I couldn't refuse." Chaeyoung's cheeks gave a crimson texture. "Okay, Ummm," Chaeyoung looked around while Mina looked at her. "You do not know where to go, do you?"

How embarrassing. "No, I've never eaten in this area of town before," the brunette replied. "I'll show you a nice place to eat," Mina took Chaeyoung's hand, isn't it too early? And dragged her after her towards the main street. "How are you with Korean barbecue?" The black-haired woman asked. Chaeyoung's eyes lit up. "So Korean barbecue it is, I know where there's a nice place to eat."

Chaeyoung wanted to shout in joy but stopped herself to leave the impression that was no longer so good in front of the black-haired woman. "Are you a photographer?" Chaeyoung asked as they walked down the street. the taller nodded, "So all this time I could have asked you to take this fucking picture..." "Do I need to remind you that I did not have a camera on me back then?" "Oh, shit, right. I'm an idiot, sorry. You were after a breakup," Chaeyoung smacked herself in the forehead. Awkward. But that only made the taller woman grin.

"I'm fine now," she replied, "I have moved on, as you can see. I haven't said no to your offer." "I... I did not think of it as a date because I didn't know your status, it's just that... I don't know, I was looking for you, kind of... and then when I saw you I could not stop myself and asked you to go out??" Chaeyoung looked at the street stubbornly. she did not dare to look at the gaze of the taller.

"We're here," Mina said, opening a glass door with a red caption. Chaeyoung said nothing while Mina did all the talking with a hostess who took them to sit at a table inside the half-busy restaurant.

"After you met me on the bridge were you really looking for me?" Mina asked as they sat down and went through the menus. Chaeyoung nodded. "Why?" "Urge?" "Interesting." "What is interesting?" "You," Mina smiled, and Chaeyoung's heart was on its way to the atmosphere.

"I'm the most embarrassing person you'll ever talk to, believe me." "And I still agreed to go on a date with you." "You turned it into a date, not me," the brunette noted. "So you do not want it to be a date?" Mina was a person that Chaeyoung could not read, she looked so delicate and so interesting. "I am." "So you pay." "I'm the one who asked you out, didn't I?" The black-haired woman giggled.

The alarm clock rang and Chaeyoung did not want to get up from the pleasant position she was in, in between her partner's arms. "Why did you put an alarm?" Minari's soft voice sounded sleepy. "There's work to be done," Chaeyoung sent a hand to the bedside table where the little clock lay. "We're on vacation, Chaengi," Mina said, burying the little girl in her arms.

"Oh right." Chaeyoung turned off the clock and went back to lying down, Mina's hands were wrapped around her belly. "You know what vacation means, right?" The older woman whispered. "What?" Chaeyoung asked. Mina kissed her partner's cheek. "More time with you at home."

Chaeyoung had been thinking about it for the whole year and a half they had been together, moving in together.

Now they were in Mina's studio apartment, a small apartment with one room which is the bathroom, the living room, the kitchen, and the bedroom was one space. Chaeyoung had a two-room apartment, so she thought about asking Mina to move in with her, in her larger apartment.

Of course, waiting for the right time, she also tried to hint at such a moment that might come sometime in the future but the older did not seem to understand what she was trying to do. "Penguin?" Chaeyoung leaned to the side so she could look at Mina. "Yes?" Her girlfriend asked in a sleepy voice.

"Maybe we'll go out for breakfast?" "Better idea," Mina said, "let's go back to sleep." Chaeng giggled.

After a few hours the two girls went out to eat brunch because it was too late for breakfast and too early for lunch, according to what Minari decided of course, and Chaeyoung, who was too whipped, would not say no to her girlfriend.

The day felt quite good but it was the first day of summer vacation, and also the first day of this particular week that the two girls did not have to go to work due to the free time they were given. 

And like any couple, they too fought. 

They were hanging out in Mina's apartment, both cuddling on the small couch in front of the television, watching a movie. That was when Chaeyoung asked the question that made it all begin.

"Eonni?" "Hmmm?" "Did you ever think about moving out?" the younger asked. Apparently, Mina did not think about the moving in to leave together kind of build-up, but about something totally different.

Mina thought that Chaeyoung intended to ‘if she'll leave Seoul in general and move back to Japan’. This led to Chaiyong herself starting to get angry for no reason, perhaps because of the atmosphere that suddenly became heavy.

"Why would I leave my home?" "I didn't ask that." "Well, it seemed that you intended to." Their voices became louder. It turns out that the whole idea of moving in to live together won't happen. At least not at the moment.

Chaeyoung eventually left Mina's apartment with tears in her eyes. She did not think that was what would happen between them, not at this stage that they could finally spend some time together now that they have some free time.

Chaeyoung found herself crying in the arms of her best friend, Dahyun while Sana made her tea. "I started it-" she said as she wiped her nose with a handkerchief that appeared in her hand, "- and look at me," she sniffed. "I do not know how it came to this situation, I tried to show her that I want us to move in together..." "But it did not turn out the way you thought it would?" Dahyun asked.

Chaeyoung nodded and took the tea served to her. "You should tell her that directly," Sana said. "But I want her to want it too." "Exactly, give her a chance to think, you want her to move in with you because your apartment is bigger, right?" Sometimes it was weird to hear Dahyun give good advice.

Chaeyoung nodded. It had been three days since she had seen Mina since they had messaged each other, she wanted to give the older time to think. But three days felt too much. So Chaeyoung returned to her apartment that evening, with a red nose, puffy eyes, and thoughts of how bad she felt.

What the brunette did not expect to see when she arrived at her apartment is that Mina is standing there. It seems she's thinking about whether to knock on the door or not, which means she was standing there doing nothing. Chaeyoung felt her heart begin to speed up. "Hey," the shorter one said and stepped forward to stand in front of Mina who turned around. "Wow, I'm feeling like an idiot right now." It made Cheang laugh.

The atmosphere became less suffocating as they continued to face each other. "I'm sorry, it's all my fault," the young woman said, looking at the ground, not wanting to meet her girlfriend's eyes. "It's not you," the taller one said. "It is, eonni, I was trying to convey some message to you and it made you mad at me..." "you just needed to be direct." "I know, I'm such an idiot." "But I'm the one who made you go," Mina continued, "and that was my mistake."

Chaeyoung looked up to look at her girlfriend. "Do you want to come in?"

"That would be nice," Mina giggled. Chaeyoung opened the door of her apartment and the two went in and took off their shoes before entering the small living room. "So we're fine, right?" Chaeyoung asked. "Obviously we're fine, more than fine." "Would you like to move in with me?"

Chaeyoung did not think she would be able to say those words. "I mean, I have a bigger apartment, and two rooms and a lot of space to work, Ummm..." "Of course, I'll move in with you, tiger cub." "It felt too easy," Chaeyoung said as she hugged her girlfriend's hips. "It's supposed to be, we're together long enough for big decisions, don't you think?" "Hmmm."

**Spring 2012**

Minari and Chaeyoung sat on a plane to Osaka. As excited as they were to see the Japanese family, they were also stressed and that's because the two parents did not know about their daughter being lesbian.

Mina's father was an important public figure with a big campaign for Osaka's council head, her mother was a well-known fashion designer and wanted Mina to learn dance and go to the performing arts school but Mina wanted to be a photographer. Her big brother was a person who could be considered as a formal man, unless he is with Mina and then they act like brothers, arguing, laughing together, sharing everything, but he, as well, does not know about his sister's true sexual attraction.

"Everything will be fine," Chaeyoung went on to tell the older who was holding her girlfriend's hand tight. "I'm going to tell them, it's going to happen when we get there," Mina promised. "I know you can do it, and I'll always be here by your side all the way, okay?" The older woman nodded.

When they got to Osaka, the first thing they did was take a picture together, and that's because Chaeyoung asked, if it was Mina they would do nothing but get to her house and start stressing, even more, Chaeyoung made the trip feel much more relaxed.

Because their plane arrived at noon, Mina took Chaeng to eat at a restaurant in front of her high school she went to. Mina told all sorts of stories about high school, about people she was friends with, about trying to be a model student for her parents. She took dance classes that felt more like a hobby, after all, she is a photographer who works for a journalism company.

What Chaeyoung did not know was that Mina's brother, Mitsuaki, and his wife, Haruko, came to the restaurant to eat with them. At first, the older said nothing about the partner she was with but after the atmosphere became more comfortable, Mina introduced Chaeng. Mina's brother was pleasantly surprised, and his wife glanced at her but eventually got used to the idea too.

"Mom and Dad don't know," Mina's brother said. "Exactly, I'm going to tell them." "Good luck, everything will be fine. It seems to me that they will accept it. They have never shown any opposition to the community." "But they also did not show anything else related to the community," Minari noted. All the people at the table (even Chaeyoung) nodded.

"What about you, Chaeyoung-san?" "Me? Ummm," the shorter woman looked at her girlfriend who took her hand and made pleasant movements on the back of her hand. "You don't have to tell." "It's okay, it happened. I was raised by my grandmother after my parents died in a car accident," Chaeyoung said. "Oh..." "Don't say you're sorry, it's not your fault."

After lunch, the couples drove in Mitsuaki's car to their house on the other side of town. A huge house that looked like a big mansion - that's how it felt to Chaeng. The parents went out to meet their children who got out of the car while Chaeyoung and Haruko took the luggages out of the trunk. "I'm quite surprised you speak Japanese so well," Haruko told Chaeyoung as they walked into the house after the parents to the house of Myoui.

They were two small people with tall children, a huge house, and two shiny black cars. Chaeyoung felt as if she had never known Mina.

For the day after the two went out on a tour of the city to places where the older had grown up. A day later, dinner, compared to the day before, was weird. Mina and Chaeng were not ready for the invited guests. Especially after Mina completely avoided telling her parents about their relationship, which led to Chaeyoung sleeping in the guest room at the end of the hall, away from Mina's room.

"You're avoiding it," Chaeyoung told her girlfriend as they sat on the older's childhood bed. "It's difficult." "Of course it's hard, Penguin, but that does not mean avoiding it is the right answer." "Tomorrow." Chaeyoung nodded. "I have a feeling there will be a lot of guests..." They could hear the voices from the floor below.

"I know you're not a person of many people. I'll stay by your side all evening." The girls exchanged a kiss that they both wanted it to be longer and deeper. "I should go get ready," Chaeyoung said. "You packed me formal clothes, I saw." "My favorites." Another kiss before Chaeyoung went to the guest room.

As much as Chaeyoung liked to see her girlfriend dressed in a black dress that is curved in the right places, with a small neckline and a skirt that ends exactly where it should be, while still seeing her amazing knees... But when Mina avoids and does nothing about a small detail she promised to mention of 'why Chaeyoung is at her parents' house', It takes away from the enthusiasm.

"My thoughts are everywhere, not so innocent, why are you doing this to me?" Chaeyoung told Mina when the older came out of her room with the black dress and delicate makeup. "Look at who's talking," the black-haired woman looked at her girlfriend who was wearing tailored pants and a button-down shirt that only had two buttons open, one more button and that would be very critical, Chaeyoung knew.

"As much as I want you here and now," the older whispered in the younger ear, "we have dinner and a mini-party to be at." Mina left Chaeyoung's hand, which she held for a moment, and walked toward the stairs.

The brunette stayed a little behind, watching the black hair begin to go down the stairs. Tomorrow, she reminded herself.

"...and this is Son Chaeyoung, Mina's close friend," Mina's mother introduced the people invited to dinner. Of course Chaeyoung sat in a different chair from the rest, not to mention that she was the shortest person in the room because of the said chair. Mina tried to swap with her but Chaeyoung said it was okay, that it was totally okay.

It wasn't okay. In the middle of the meal, the brunette got up and apologized before going to the bathroom. Her appetite is gone. Chaeyoung never imagined that Mina so closed up to her family, continuing to hide behind the closet doors. The conversation that was before she went to lock herself in a room far from the Japanese people, was like a kind of rope that held her tied by the throat and tightened slowly.

"...Minari, honey, do you remember the son of -" a long name that Chaeyoung did not remember, "- the one you dated at the time?" "How is he?" Mina's smile had not left her face since they arrived, and even when she was talking about her mythological ex. Of course, Chaeyoung knew about him, and about the other ex-girlfriend who secretly dated her at the time. "I saw him yesterday, and remembered that time back then," Mina's mother kept talking, "and I could not help but think of you and that you are here. And I said to myself, why not meet. After all, you do not go out with anyone...", That's what broke it, the last pull. Mina just nodded and agreed with her mother. All this time Chaiyung thought her girlfriend's parents at least thought and knew she was dating someone.

But she was wrong.

Chaeyoung thought about getting married in a legal place like Japan, but now, she did not know what she wanted. Go buy a ring? Go ask Mina's parents for confirmation that won't do anything because Chaeyoung will marry Mina no matter what. But it seems that her girlfriend will continue to hide her from her family, what Chaeyoung no longer has, mother and father who will stand there next to her and lead her down the aisle...

Eventually, the brunette decided she could not stay in the suffocating room, in the suffocating house. So she decided to go out to the garden that the older woman had shown her the day before on a tour of the house.

"Hey," Chaeyoung sat on the garden bench, even if she didn't wear a warm layer in the ten degrees that were outside, she didn't care. She looked at the man she did not expect to be sitting next to her outside in the cold, Mina's brother.

"Hey." "You cried." "Yes." An awkward conversation, alone, with her girlfriend's brother. "It has something to do with Minari." Chaeyoung nodded. "She's scared." "She could at least say she's going out with someone, no matter if with a boy or a girl, you speak Japanese, like in Korean there is a non-binary word for a person," Chaeyoung said aloud.

"Your Japanese is really good," Mitsuki said. "I'm a journalist." "Of course-" The man took a deep breath and tightened the jacket he was wearing, "-Minari loves you." "I know." "Our family, not perfect. As much as our parents want the perfect relationships for us, if Mina were to say something to our parents they would ask her questions that I know my sister would not feel comfortable with." Chaeyoung did not look at him. "I told her I was going to talk to you. As much as she wanted to avoid the conversation with our parents, it seemed to me it was the right decision that I'm here instead of her."

"It is. It seems to me that I would not have been able to keep my anger if she had been here." It made the man laugh. "Come on in. Don't stay in the cold."

Mina was waiting for the guest room. "Tiger cub..." "I understand what you're going through..." "I told them." "What?" "I told them." "But..." "Chaengi," Mina stood in front of the younger and put her hands on her shoulders, moving her girlfriend's long, soft brunette hair, "I love you, I love you so much, so so much. And I made promises I did not keep. I was scared, all these years I went against my parents and I freeze when it comes to you. I do not know why I... " "It's okay ..." "You deserve everything. They deserve to know why you are here, what you are and who You are for me, and that you are the love of my life. "

"Penguin." Chaeyoung began to cry. She did not want to cry because of the makeup she put for the meal but she could not stop the tears. "It's okay, you can cry." Mina let Chaeyoung hug her waist and put her head on her chest, where the younger woman loved to put her head when they cuddled.

"They accepted me," Mina whispered, stroking her hair. "They sent me to wait for you after Mitzuki Senpai went to talk to you." The older put a kiss on the tip of her head, "Tomorrow morning they will want to talk to you. They will probably ask a lot of questions, more than they have already asked," Chaeyoung grinned and fastened her hands around her girlfriend's waist. "You can sleep with me tonight ..." "I love you."

**Winter 2014**

"It's perfect," Chaeyoung said while she was with Dahyun at the mall. Dahyun nodded and looked at the large selection in front of them. "I still remember the day I was in your place..." "You waited until Sana proposed to you," Chaeyoung reminded her. "whatever you say."

Dahyun and Sana have been married for a year, such a beautiful and cute couple. With the amount of double-dates they went out on together, the couple would have looked more clingy and grossly flirty than Chaeyoung thought she and Mina were. Chaeyoung was one of Dahyun's three bridesmaids at her best friend's wedding. Alongside Nayeon and Jeongyeon, another couple who are close friends of Dahyun.

"I'm sure Mina will love it." "I hope so." "No, you do not use the word 'hope', she will say yes, Chaeng."

One December day, Mina and Chaeyoung decided to go see the Christmas market closest to their apartment, a relatively large market with a huge display of lights which at the end of it was a huge Christmas tree decorated with thousands of pictures of people from a project of one of the representatives of the head of the council.

The market was crowded with people, like any Christmas market, there was a lot of food, house ornaments for the tree, the fireplace, or decorations in general. As well as gift stalls of all sizes.

Chaeyoung did not notice that Mina stopped at one of the stalls until she heard the older giggling at her. The shorter woman turned around to look at her girlfriend holding a deer antler headband that comes with a Santa Claus hat.

Mina paid quickly before Chaeyoung had time to say anything at all, and the next thing that happens is that she finds herself wearing the deer horns on her head. "My tiger cub is so cute." "Am I not a deer?" "You're still my tiger cub, dear," Mina said. The older giggled to her own joke as Chaeng rolled her eyes. Mina then took the young woman's hand as they walked between the stands.

Chaeyoung kept thinking about the little box in her coat pocket. About the thin, silver ring with the stone that Chaeyoung thought suited her girlfriend's amazing personality the best.

"Are you okay?" Minari asked as the two walked towards the lights display at the end of the market. "Ah?" Chaeyoung left the box she was holding in her free hand and looked at the black-haired woman who looked at her worriedly. "Yes. Yes. All right. Why wouldn't I be?" "Something is bothering you."

"It does not bother me just ..." "Just?" "Stressed." Mina released her grip on Chaeyoung's hand. They stood by the large and colorful fountain. "Penguin..." They stood facing each other. "Chaengi, are you sure everything's fine?"

"I searched for you for a year. I did not want to admit that I was desperate, because it is a big world, and Seoul is a huge city ..." "Chaeng ..." "Then one day I saw you. Next to the printer on my first day at work and I am, and the embarrassing person I am asked you to just go out with me ..." "What ..." "Then suddenly four years have passed and I'm still here by your side.” "No..." the older whispered. "-I thought about it, for a while.-” Chaeng took the little box out of her coat pocket “-I even asked your brother, I did not get to talk about it with the parents. But no matter what they would say..." "Oh, no," the black-haired woman whispered again and put her hands on the hands of the shorter.

Chaeyoung heard Mina's words, she looked up to look the older in the eyes as tears filled her eyes, "Pingu ..." Mina suddenly smiled and left Chaeyoung's hands. The older pulled a small purple box from her coat pocket as well.

Chaeyoung choked, "What?" "I wanted to propose," Mina said and opened the box, a silver, and slightly thicker ring was inside, a tiny diamond stone was on it. The younger woman did not wait and also opened her box to show the older the ring she bought. "You first," Mina said, "after the sweet speech you made."

Myoui Minari, Penguin, will you marry me?" "Yes, of course, I will," Mina giggled and let Chaeyoung put the ring on her engagement finger. "Do you have anything to tell me?" The younger woman asked.

"Son Chaeyoung," Chaeyoung giggled, she did not know why, but more tears continued to appear in her eyes, tears of joy, all joy, and love for Mina. "That day on the bridge, your pictures encouraged me. Or rather your only picture I saw, you smiled there. It was after the longest relationship I had then and for some reason seeing a person smiling at the camera was what I needed to feel that I could move on. I took a break after this day, and yes, I went looking for you too. "

Mina took a deep breath to try not to sound shaky as she spoke, "You found me. Again. If you can put it that way. And four years of ups and downs went through with us being together. And I would like to say that your parents would be proud of you if they were here. But they Here, Chaeng-i. They will always be here and I will be there for you where they physically cannot be. I love you. No matter what."

A sob left Chaeyoung's mouth, Mina was so good at talking, and her angelic voice always made her feel good. "So, will you marry me, my tiger cub?" Chaeyoung just nodded, if she had opened her mouth she knew she would not be able to stop herself from crying even more. Mina puts the ring on her girlfriend's engagement finger, or rather her fiancée.

The two kissed just as the fountain began to dance, the water coming out of various pipes colored lights in happy shades of Christmas colors. The two giggled at the irony and cliché situation they were in.

"Let's go home. I'm cold," Mina said and took one of her fiancée's hands. "I need you," the tall one whispered and made the younger blush.

Their night has just begun.

**Fall 2015**

"I want a baby."

Chaeyoung was not ready for the words that came out of Mina's mouth as she entered the kitchen where the older was making breakfast.

It has been several months since their wedding. A modest wedding in Osaka, Japan. With family and friends. Since then the two have gone into some kind of trance of work and relationships.

Mina left the company they worked for to develop a solo career as a photographer who works with different people for different things. More credit but not necessarily more money. And Chaeyoung has been editor-in-chief and reporter of the month for some time in a row.

"What?" Cheeyoung asked, she was a little shocked by what the older said. "Adoption, pregnancy with help," Mina gave Chaeyoung her morning coffee, "I want a baby." "Where did it come from?" "Chaengi, we've been together for five years. I want to go one step further with you." Chaeyoung did not know if she was ready for children at all, it felt too early for her, she did not want to disappoint Mina but...

"Can I think about it?" "Obviously yes. It's thoughts for the near future."

So that morning, Chaeyoung kept coming across the word "baby." In songs, movies, series, even on the street. She at one point even went to ask about getting pregnant and reading about adoption to prepare for a future that seems imminent.

But the moment Chaeyoung made her decision, she knew what she wanted, she just knew she could move one step further in her relationship with the woman she loved, she was ready.

"So you want a baby," Dahyun said as the two left for the city. Mina started working with a certain studio while Sana stayed at work until late, which gave the two best friends some time together. "Mina brought up the subject some time ago, I thought about it. Do you think we're ready to start a family?"

"You entered the adoption process." "You can not compare us, Chaeng." The two sat in a restaurant and drank wine. "I know-" she sipped her white wine, "-but I thought about it. Mina was already thinking about it, I think," Chaeyoung looked at her hands that were around the glass, "I think she wants to get pregnant. And I did some research about it," Chaeyoung raised her head to look at her friend, "there is a great chance of miscarriage, there is a huge chance of twins, there is..." "Breathe."

"I think... I want it, no. I want it, I want the next step, damn it, I want twins. And I'll be by Mina's side all the time, through the whole process!"

"Then tell her that. You're ready for a baby and even two," Dahyun raised her glass, "cheers, for the next step." "Cheers, for the next step."

  * ••📷•••



Chaeyoung passed gentle kisses on the older's soft skin, lowering one shoulder of the bra while one hand passed over the black-haired chest. "How lucky I am," Mina whispered in Chaeyoung's ear which gave the younger woman the ability to say the following words, "No, I am the lucky one here. I'm ready for the next step, Penguin."

The brunette passed kisses everywhere while Mina's hands were everywhere and even took their time on the younger woman's chest who moaned from the touch. "If only we could both do it biologically," Chaeyoung whispered as she rested her head on the black-haired bare belly.

"We can," the older's head was sent back on the pillow when she felt Chaeyoung's touch inside her, moaning from the pleasure. "We can bring twins together. Tiger~" It made the younger stop. "I can't get pregnant," Chaeyoung whispered. "Chaengi?" The brunette came out slowly and sat down. "I... I can't get pregnant. I'm sorry, I ruined the moment," Chaeyoung felt a tear drop down her cheek. Mina sat down and covered her waist with a blanket.

"Don't say that." "Penguin ..." The older ran a hand through Chaeyoung's hair, "It's okay." "When I was in university I had an accident, I had tests and one of them was an ovarian test to see if everything was fine down there, they found I was infertile so I decided to tie the ovaries," Chaeyoung looked at Mina, "I never planned on getting pregnant, I never thought about it, it wasn't me. I can not get pregnant with you if I do not have the ability to get pregnant."

Mina took Chaeyoung for a hug, Chaeyoung's head rested on the older's bare chest. "But I want twins, penguin, I want twins so much..." "But what if we won't have?" "If not, we'll have a cute little baby and still become amazing mothers. We'll get help from the hospital, go to the sperm bank, and find a match, get pregnant biologically." Chaeyoung took Mina's face with both hands and brought her to a deep kiss.

"I love you," the brunette whispered into a kiss. "I love you so much, Tiger. Let's continue what we started in the shower, okay?" Chaeyoung giggled. "Okay."

  * ••📷•••



Chaeyoung was sitting outside the fertility doctor's room while Mina did tests. The younger woman sat with a catalog, a catalog of men who were on the sperm bank list. As much as Chaeyoung did not care which man they would choose she paid attention to their statuses, statuses that wouldn't be given daily. Such as blood type, sexual orientation, an image with a summary of appearance and genes.

The young woman placed the catalog on the chair next to her. She'll let Mina choose. After all, she's the one about to get pregnant. Chaeyoung took a deep breath and watched the door open, Mina and the doctor left the room and walked towards her. "Anyone interesting?" the black-haired woman asked. "I'm not really into men, but thank you for asking," the younger woman laughed.

"I will leave you to talk about it, take your time and the tests will arrive in twenty-four hours," the doctor announced before returning to her office. "I was thinking of a queer couple," Mina said, taking her wife's hand as they left the clinic. "There were some in the catalog, or rather one of them." "That is...?" "What if we had children together with a couple who could not have children?"

"For you to be a carrier?" "Not exactly. They will be ours but also theirs, joint parentship." "Penguin, I don't understand." They walked along the street toward the parking lot where their car was. "I read about same-sex couples of men who gave help to the bank, they said that if they couldn't then at least someone could expand their family..." "And you want to give them back a favor because they can not expand their family because of fucking government laws," Chaeyoung finished her remarks. "exactly."

"Let's think about it, okay?" Chaeyoung said, "This is a huge step..." "Obviously we will think about it, Chaeyoung, this is not an easy step." "You're too good for this world." "I know."

A week later, Chaeyoung and Mina left their apartment for the cold of early December, they went to a small cafe not far from the younger woman's workplace, where they had arranged to meet a couple of men. For that past week, Mina has made long phone calls with people about the pregnancy, how it will work and which way is best for her to do it, as well as choosing the man to be the biological father of the baby they are about to bring.

"I hope they are nice," Chaeyoung said, holding Mina's hand for warmth. "I talked to them a few times. They sounded very nice. They had been thinking of adopting for a while and when I offered them what I thought they were quite excited." "So are they willing to be our partners in being parents?" Mina nodded.

The cafe was not so empty but everyone who came in went out with a cup of coffee and pastries.

The pair of men who had arranged to meet them were already sitting inside with cups of coffee, talking to each other, one with glasses and brunette hair, the other has black hair and was a little taller. Mina walked in front of Chaeyoung and when the black hair noticed her, he stood up and hugged her, the two brunettes looked a little surprised. "Have you met yet?" The man with the glasses asked.

"No," the black-haired man said, "but we talked. Park Jinyoung," the black-haired man said and shook Chaeyoung's hand. "Son Chaeyoung, you already know Minari." "This is my husband, to Lim Jaebum," the brunette man stood up and shook the women's hands.

The four of them sat around the table in the cafe and had a relaxed conversation to get to know each other. The men were happy that Mina and Chaeng had thought about joining them in a family that was about to be in the future because of the biological connection it would have.

"So there's a plan?" Jinyoung asked. Mina nodded, "There's a match with you so that sooner or later we'll start, chances are early next year." Chaeyoung took a bite out of the pastry she ordered.

She looked at the three people with whom she was sitting around the table, the brunette smiled to herself, her family, this is just the beginning, but her family has already managed to grow so much. She did not mind sharing the children with the male couple, they were going to be there alongside the women raising their children. Not questions of "who is the father", maybe an explanation of how biologically the children were born ... but right now it did not matter, Chaeyoung was happy and Mina was happy, and that is what matters.

**Spring 2017**

"You look weird like that," Chaeyoung told her wife who was lying in their bed eating a chocolate bar. "How?" "The blonde," Chaeyoung said. "What's wrong with the blonde?" Mina asked, her voice was amused, Chaeyoung knew that Mina understood that she was not talking about the hair.

The older had long, blond hair, as much as Chaeyoung liked to think about how beautiful her wife looked with the color, she could do nothing but play with it while the older lay in bed and rested. She was in her seventh month and the doctor recommended moving less.

"You look too good with it, and I can't do anything other than just looking at you," Chaeyoung said, kissing Mina on the forehead. "When will the boys arrive?" "They're on their way with the food, you have to eat for three," Chaeyoung giggled. "I told you everything would be fine." "So many times, I still can't believe we have twins." The older giggled to herself. "They're here," Mina said and a second later the doorbell rang. "Not only are you pregnant, but your sense of hearing is also getting stronger."

The young black-haired woman went to open the door for both guests. Jinyoung was holding a bag with food in boxes, Chaeyoung guessed he cooked, and Jaebum was holding another bag with the logo of some cafe. "Please tell me she did not ask you to bring anything sweet for dessert," the young woman said, Jaebum passed the bag behind his back, "no."

"Come in," Chaeyoung moved aside to let the men in. "She doesn't stop eating sweets, then salty, and complains about tasteless vegetables, help me," the black-haired woman whimpered.

Mina came out of the bedroom, limping in the direction of the living room. "How are you?" Jaebum asked as he helped the blonde sit on the couch. Chaeyoung and Jinyoung at the same time arranged the food in serving dishes. "I feel the kicks of those two. You can feel it," Mina said.

Neither of them knew what the genders of the two babies were but neither of them wanted to know until they came out.

The two couples become closer and closer as a family as time went on, when Chaeyoung went to work sometimes one of the men came to their apartment to help Mina as the pregnancy progressed.

Everyone was stressed by the idea that the twins would have to come out early with a cesarean section but tried not to stress too much. With many visits to the fetal check-up in the hospital, general examination, etc, everyone seems to be healthy.

"You're eating a lot," Jinyoung said when he saw Mina keep pushing more food to her mouth, "I eat for three people, Park Jinyoung, so please, keep your mouth shut next to a pregnant woman." The black-haired man immediately shut his mouth. Chaeyoung and Jaebum just laughed on the side.

  * ••📷•••



"How are you Minari-ssi?" The gynecologist asked as she moved the device over the blonde's belly. "More and more terrible," she answered honestly. Chaeyoung stood beside her and held her hand while they did further tests. It was already the 36th week and Mina's condition was deteriorating with fever and pain.

"One of them has breathing problems," the gynecologist said after returning to the room where the two were staying. "We'll have to have a cesarean section to get the two out," the woman said.

"Everything will be fine, right?" "If we take them out on time and we work fast everything will be fine. Both will be premature but it will be much better for them to come out." The pair of women nodded. "When will the surgery be?" "I'll arrange a room and we can start in an hour or so."

"How long will the surgery be?" The young woman asked. "No more than an hour, we need to work fast with a pulmonologist," the doctor replied. "The surgery will not be terrible, there are many cases that it happens, whether it's twins or not. The surgery is simple." After the gynecological explanation, she went to arrange a room for the cesarean section.

"Do you want me to call Jinyoung and Jaebum?" "They're not at work? I don't want to stress them out." "They are our babies, penguins, they'll want to know." Mina eventually nodded but added, "Call them when I get into surgery, okay?" "Okay."

Chaeyoung was upset that she could not enter the operating room, which is because Mina decided that it would be better for her to wait outside and not be stressed, since the young woman went through a trauma with an operating room a few years ago.

The black-haired woman was waiting for the men in the waiting room while Mina went through the surgery. The men arrived not long after, Jaebum was with his work clothes, a suit. And Jinyoung seems to have just thrown on himself what he found after he just woke up, jeans and a hoodie.

"Everything is fine?" The two asked at the same time as they hugged the younger woman who dug her nose between the men's bodies. "Yes, she went into a cesarean section," Chaeyoung said. "One of the fetuses has breathing problems, the doctor said she would have to get them out earlier than expected because of it." Jinyoung ran a hand through her black hair. "Everything will be fine, with Mina and the twins, no need to worry." It made Chaeyoung cry.

Chaeyoung had a car accident, after all, but before that, when she was younger she was in the situation she was in at that moment when her parents got into a car accident and did not leave the operating room alive. Since then the woman has had a problem with operating rooms and hospitals, her trauma.

Chaeyoung, Jaebum, and Jinyoung sat in the waiting room waiting for a gynecologist to come and tell them the news. And when that happened, according to her facial expression, the three of them felt they could breathe. "Myoui Mina came into a room to rest from the operation, she is very brave and her body was strong throughout the operation, with the internal bleeding that started as well, she is a fighter, and exhausted but will get up in a few hours," Chaeyoung's hands were held by each of the men next to her.

"As for the twins, they were taken to incubators. Would you like to know their sex, or wait until Mina-ssi gets up?" "Everything okay with the one with the breathing problems?" Chaeyoung immediately asked. "Yes, everything is fine, their immune system will hopefully get stronger as the body grows," the gynecologist replied. "We'll wait until Mina gets up, thank you," Jaebum said. The gynecologist nodded and walked away, but not before giving them the blonde's room number.

It took a few hours for Mina to wake up. It was also a stage where she could walk out of her room in a wheelchair to see the babies. And Chaeyoung and Mina waited until they reached the baby area before receiving the sex of the twins. Jinyoung and Jaebum were already waiting for the two there, with entry clearance that one of them is the biological father of the two, and the other is his partner.

"I'm here," Mina said in a tired voice, but a smile was still visible on her face. "How do you feel?" The bespectacled asked. "Good enough. When can we get in?" The blonde asked. "Soon," Jinyoung replied, "we need to wait for one of the doctors to come."

And with those words, their gynecologist walked towards them with a smile on her face. "Can I know how it works between you two?" Mina giggled, "Chaengi, she's my wife, Jinyoung-" she pointed to the black-haired man, "-he is the biological father of the twins, and that-" she pointed to the bespectacled, "-his husband." "So you got pregnant..." "Without sex, yes," Jinyoung was the one who replied, "but we will be one family thanks to the twins, we will all be their parents."

The gynecologist nodded and looked at the couples. Chaeyoung knew that Mina and Jinyoung would have to sign documents because of the biological ties and then to Jaebum and herself it would take time until they could "adopt" the twins to be considered their parents. But they will succeed with all this, they will fight if they have to.

"Now, for the good news, but there is also bad news, what would you like to start with?" "Bad," the four of them answered immediately. "We will have to keep an eye on one of them, the immune system is weak and hopefully it will improve as they grow." They nodded, "And the good ones?" Mina asked. "You have a daughter and a son, twins. The son came out first because he had the problem. The daughter came out afterward, three minutes apart."

The news was great, even with the information that their son had immune problems. "I'll give you time to think about their names..." "We have names," Mina immediately replied.

They made a list of names of boys and girls as well as names that fit both sexes, with names they liked more at the top of the list. "You can come in, come with me." They went into the baby's room and were taken to two incubators that were next to each other, "Every now and then we take them out of one to put them together, closeness helps your son..." "Hyunjin," Jinyoung said. "For Hyunjin's body, to get through and fight better. He's going to be closer to his twin ..." "Yeji," Chaeyoung said this time. "Proximity will help a lot."

The family stood around the two incubators holding the babies' little hands. Their family... Yes, they are family. They are going to go through a lot together as well as a serious purchase of things for babies. Chaeyoung smiled, one step further. Another picture hung on the wall.

**present time**

Chaeyoung has not been in this situation for three years, of total pressure from the stressful situation of getting to the hospital as quickly as possible. Just thinking about her life with her wife and the twins made her feel the emotions and fear flooding her until a few tears found themselves falling on her cheeks.

"Son Chaeyoung?" A man in a white robe approached her. She immediately got up. "Is everything okay?" she asked.

"We got the results of the tests," the man said, Chaeyoung looked at him and got to her feet. "The results came out quite alarming, but everything is fine after we connected to the monitor. Regular heart rate, regular breathing, everything will be fine." "Thank you," the blonde's heart dropped, "really thank you, Doctor."

"Chaengi," the blonde's name was said from the waiting room door. Mina entered the room, with a sleeping girl in her arms. "How's Hyunjin?" The older woman asked. Chaeyoung went to hug her wife. "Everything is fine, he's stable." "Did you talk to Jinyoung and Jaebum?" "No, they are on vacation. I did not want to disturb them. I wanted to check the situation first."

"Excuse me," the doctor approached them. "Would you like to come in and see him?" "Can we?" Mina asked. "Of course, come after me. He's asleep, he's going to stay that way at least until morning," the Doctor explained, "he'll have to stay here for the week." "Thank you," Mina said, holding her young daughter in her hands.

The doctor opened the door for them and led them to the pediatric ward, where there were several children on beds, on the bed closest to the window, there was their older twin. Chaeyoung immediately ran to him and looked at Hyunjin closely.

"You'll be fine," she whispered to the boy and kissed his forehead. Mina puts Yeji on the bed next to her twin.

Mina meanwhile sat down on the armchair by the bed, the blonde was still standing. "He gave me the fear of life," she whispered and not looking at her wife, "I was so stressed." "tiger cub, his immune system has not been so good since he was born," Mina reassured Chaeyoung and took her hand so that the younger woman would sit on her lap because there was no other place in the room where she could sit.

"I know," Chaeyoung held the hand of Mina who moved her thumb in circles on the back of her hand, "but..." "Everything is fine, the doctor said everything is stable." "And I'm thankful there was no other news."

Chaeyoung felt Mina's lips on the nape of her neck, the older used to do this every time Chaeyoung got stressed or was in an emotional state. "Thank you, Penguin."

"You did the right thing, taking Jinnie to the hospital on time, waiting outside, and calming yourself down like you know how to do..." "I saw our past together. Pictures. As if I was looking at a wall full of our pictures around a vague picture of where we first met."

"Your defense mechanism was activated, you thought of good things so you won't think of the bad things that might happen." Chaeyoung grinned, "You sound like a psychologist." Mina kissed the blonde's neck again.

"Mommy?" Yeji's voice was heard. "Hey, baby," Chaeyoung stood up and went to stand by the bed. "Jinnie okay?" The three-year-old asked. "Yeah, everything's fine, Jinnie is tired, he needs to sleep and stay in the hospital," Chaeyoung replied, she felt Mina standing next to her.

"I'll call Jinyoung, I'll be right back," Mina said, patting her wife on the shoulder. The blonde nodded.

After the conversation with the other couple, Mina returned to the room, she smiled from what she saw, Chaeyoung was in the hospital bed with Yeji and Hyunjin. The black-haired woman kissed each of them on the forehead and sat down on the armchair and she too entered the land of dreams.

**Author's Note:**

> We have reached the end! Thanks to everyone who read and came this far! Hope you enjoyed this short story!
> 
> About the story:
> 
> The idea came when I was sitting outside my GP's office in the waiting room, where he had a huge picture of the view of New York.
> 
> Yes, I know the Hwang twins are little kids compared to all the other members of their bands (Itzy and stray kids) but I wanted twins and they are the ones I thought of.
> 
> I wanted to write girl × girl fanfic for a long time and here I wrote one *applause for myself*.
> 
> About writing:
> 
> When I started writing it, ideas came up mainly because of the book "One Day in November" and the movie "Happiest Season"
> 
> I had so much fun and it was even refreshing to finally write a book about a couple of girls. The writing was so flowing
> 
> Did you know: The first ship I thought of was MinSung - stray kids, the second was ChanBaek - exo but I chose to write about a lesbian couple because why not!!!
> 
> Did you know: At first I thought they would meet for the first time at the workplace and not on the bridge... that they would meet at work, that Chayung would go and develop the pictures she took and Mina would help her... It did not happen in the end.
> 
> Did you know: I did not want to write a wedding chapter because I decided I hated writing weddings.


End file.
